Darker
by xMako-Eyesx
Summary: Tif/Ruf Tifa frees some of her friends from ShinRa's prisons but ends up there herself. With little hope for escape Tifa seeks to remain alive through cooperation with the president and his son.
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys. Thank you so much for reading my other fanfics. Many of you have given me such wonderful comments that just make my day. Well I'm 19 now and I've just finished my second year of university. I stumbled upon this fanfic that I started writting a couple years ago and I decided to finish it and post it. I don't really have any ideas for any other so far so I'm not too sure if I will be my last fanfic. I still love reading all of yours though so I'll be around here somewhere :P

Just a warning, I was not so nice to the characters in this story. I guess the title reflects the mood I was in at the moment. Anyways I hope you enjoy it!

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Tifa ran through the cold, wet streets of sector VII. Her feet splashed through the puddles made by the many potholes that lined the streets and the now pouring rain. Her broken shoes didn't provide her much aid in her futile attempt to keep her feet dry. Tifa turned into an alley way hoping to lose the men that were after her. She found a cardboard box and hid behind it. Tifa forced her eyes shut and hoped she would never be found. A hope that was a foolish one considering who was after her. The soldiers of ShinRa never failed to find what they were looking for.

Tifa thought back to the events that lead to the panicked state she was now in. She heard tat Cloud and Barret were staring to retaliate against ShinRa. Tifa was more then willing to do her part since she despised them as much as the two boys. Barret sent Tifa to attempt to free some of the Avalanche captives in ShinRa's prison. Tifa succeeded and Jessie and Biggs now free. This, of course, sent the President into a rage and she was now being hunted. Tifa hoped Barret appreciated this.

Tifa's breath quickened when she heard heavy footsteps pounding towards her. The group of soldiers entered the alley way. Tifa held her breath. Her arm was grabbed and she was pulled to her feet. Her thin body was pushed against the wall as one of the guard inspected her.

"Yeah, this is the one" he gave a nod. Before Tifa could react she was knocked out by a harsh hit on the head. The soldiers smirking faces and egotistical laugh was all she could see and hear before everything went black.

Tifa slowly opened her eyes. She was freezing cold and laying on a hard steel bed. Her head was rested on a paper thin pillow. Tifa sat up slowly. The pain from the blow she had receive started to take its effect. A sharp pain shot through her head but it soon subsided. Tifa stood up and looked at herself. Her hair was a mess, her clothes were ripped and covered in mud. Tifa sighed with sorrow as she looked at the bars containing her within this place. She knew where she was, she was in the ShinRa building and wanted nothing more then to get out.

Tifa tried her best to fix herself up. She brushed the dirt off her torn clothing and smoothed out her hair. She walked to the bars of her cell and moved her finger to touch it. She was greeted with a painful dose of electricity, she withdrew her hand quickly and made a mental note never to do that again.

"Hey look, this one's awake" She heard one of the guards say off in the distance. Tifa listened as foot steppes approached her and she backed away from the bars.

"Okay, lets get her out" The other said and opened a latch in the door. "Put you hands in here, honey." Tifa decided, much against her will, that it was best to do what she was told, for now. Tifa slid her arms through the hole and hand cuffs snapped around her wrists. Tifa stepped back as the door opened, the first guard grabbed her arm harshly and pulled her along. He lead her to a room labelled "showers." He pushed Tifa inside and threw some dark blue clothing at her.

"Shower and put those on," with those little instructions he slammed the door shut. Tifa jumped as the hand cuffs fell off her wrists. Tifa stood alone in a very dark room. She could barely make out the shower head and dial. She felt so alone as the metal door clicked shut, indicating it had been locked. Tifa stripped off her clothes and stepped into the shower. She turned on the water and shivered as the cold water hit her body. There was no other option than cold, no matter how far Tifa turned the dial, either way the temperature remained the same.

She quickly scrubbed her hair with a bar of soap then cleaned the rest of her body. She rinsed everything off and hopped out of the shower. She used the small towel she had left to dry herself off. Her hair always took work to take care of but she managed to get it somewhat dry. Tifa got dressed in the fitted navy pants and put on the matching vest. Tifa looked around the room for a way out, there was none, no windows or anything. She sighed and turned to the button that said 'Press when finished.' She pushed it and a flap in the door opened.

"Wrists" A voice demanded. Tifa put her wrists through the door and another set of cuffs snapped onto them. Tifa stepped back as the door opened, then she was dragged to another location in the prison. It was a open room with a few maids present. Tifa was lead to a mirror where a thin blonde haired girl walked over to her. She was dressed in a navy blue uniform and looked very professional.

"I'll take it from here boys" She dismissed the guards. The girl sat Tifa down. "I'm Elena"

"I'm Tifa" She told her, unsure if the girl was even interested.

"I've heard about you. You're the first one in years to get all the way into the prison. The boss is going to want to have a long talk with you" Elena informed her.

"Oh" Tifa frowned. Elena picked up a brushed and combed out Tifa's hair. The usual thick strand fell over her shoulder and the rest flowed down far past her waist. Tifa told Elena where to tie her hair and Elena did so.

"Prison is miserable but the least I can do is make you look good. Took me years to convince the Boss to let me do all this" Elena smiled gently. Tifa managed to smile for the first time that day but it was short and small. Elena took her arm and led her to the main part of the ShinRa building. They entered a large glass elevator and Elena pushed a button. Tifa waited quietly as it traveled upwards. She looked at the city around her. Barret was down there somewhere, Tifa hoped he was planning her escape.

Elena took her up the stairs to Mr. Shinra's desk and Elena places her in front of him. Elena cleared her throat and the president looked up from his work.

"Sir, this is the girl who broke into our prison, Tifa Lockhart" Elena said and pushed Tifa forward. Everyone in the room had their eyes locked on her, including Rufus Shinra who emerged from the shadows and joined his father. Tifa locked eyes with him and wished she never had, his stare alone made her want to cry. It was so cold, Tifa looked to the ground.

"So you're Tifa Lockhart? Well you should be proud to have done what you did" Mr. Shinra seemed to be complimenting or congratulating her but his tone made her uneasy. "No one has ever done what you have, unfortunately it'll be your down fall." Tifa bit her lip.

"Rufus, my boy, what should we do with her. Kill her?" Mr. Shinra seemed delighted at the thought, and it sickened Tifa.

"Use her," Rufus uttered to everyone's surprise.

"What do you mean" Mr. Shinra questioned his son. Tifa also stared at him in with doubt in her eyes, she couldn't read what he was thinking. His eyes and face reviled nothing.

"She broke through our defences, why not sue her to make them better. She's valuable to us" Rufus explained as if it was the most obvious concept ever.

"Brilliant boy, that's a perfect idea" Mr. Shinra sneered in a tone that made Tifa cringe. "Rufus show her around, then take her to Hojo"

"What? Why can't Elena do it?" Rufus snapped in a low growl.

"Because she's needed to bring me the other prisoners and I'll never have you go against my word, boy" Mr. Shinra snapped back at his son, narrowing his eyes. Mr. Shinra clicked a remote and made Tifa's cuffs snap open and fall to the ground. "Make a run for it Miss Lockhart and you'll be killed." Tifa swallowed and gave a slow nod. Rufus walked past her and Tifa followed after him. She watched his back with fear thinking he would turn around and shoot her at any minute.

"You'll be living in the prison, you already know where that is" Rufus told her. His voice was filled with disinterest. Tifa gave a slow nod and Rufus led her down one floor. He did not tell her much about this floor, he just informed her his office was there and if she needed to tell him something that is where she could find him.

"I don't like to be bothered so do not enter unless I give you permission" Rufus hissed a warning. On the next level down were the labs where she would be working. Tifa thought they would be stopping here but instead he took her down to the first level of the ShinRa building. This floor contained the main entrance leading out to the streets of sector I, which Tifa eyed with longing.

"Bath rooms are here, there are more in the building but those are the ones you are allowed to use" Rufus informed her, emphasizing 'you' as if she was something disgusting and worthless. Tifa looked towards the door, she could run. She'd be killed but maybe she could get far enough away and stay alive. Her thoughts were interrupted as a hand grabbed her wrist and she was pushed against a wall. Her tiny frame smashed into the wall and Tifa softly gasped in pain from the blow. She arm was twisted up behind her back so she couldn't move and a strong body pressed up against her back. Tifa felt Rufus' hot breath on her neck and by her ear. She was terrified of what he would do, why was treating her like this?

"Thinking about running?" He hissed into her ear. Tifa's eyes widened, he had seen her looking towards the door. "Let me tell you this Tifa," Rufus said her name with a romantic care that made Tifa want to puke. "You can run but we'd kill you. Well not we, ME. I don't take kindly to traders and I don't like people who disobey me. Understand?" Tifa nodded. "Out loud."

"Yes" Tifa breathed out. She was trembling when he let her go and he whirled her around to face him. She shook in front of him, cursing her body for it's current weakness. The corner of his lips curled into a small smirk, Tifa glared at him, was getting a kick out of doing this to her? Gross. Tifa was disgusted by him.

"Lets go," Rufus grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her into the elevator once again. They went back up into the lab area and Rufus shoved her out of the elevator. "Go to Hojo's lab." Those were his last words as the elevator doors shut and he left her alone. Tifa let out a huge breath and sunk to the floor. She wanted to get our of here so badly but the fear Rufus had instilled in her was keeping her from running.

Tifa stopped shaking and rose to her feet once again. She made her way to Hojo's lab and stepped inside. The man that greeted her was just as disgusting as the rest of the ShinRa employees. He was an ungracefully thin man with bones threatening to penetrate through his skin at any minute. His hair was a mess and glasses hung down over his nose.

"Miss Lockhart, how nice to meet you" He said in a slimy tone that made Tifa shiver.

"Hello" She greeted, relieved he didn't offer to shake hands, for Tifa never want to touch him.

"I'll show you around," Hojo turned around and faced the rest of the lab. "Over there is the science department, we do experiments in there with Mako. Stay away from there" His bony finger pointed to the corner with massive amounts of equipment and glowing test tubes. "Over there is the weapons lab. That's where you'll be working with Scarlet to make improvements to our security." Hojo gestured over to where a scantily clad woman with bleach blond hair stood.

Tifa made her way over to her, she was glad to be away from Hojo. Scarlet looked her up and down. In a shrill voice, she spoke to Tifa and Tifa realized that she wasn't any better then Hojo.

"So you're the one who broke through my design" Scarlet gave her an evil stare.

"Yes" Tifa confirmed and Scarlet continued to glare.

"Okay, lets get to work" Scarlet sat down at her computer and pointed to the one Tifa was to use.

"We'll go over the tape footage first" Tifa sat and watched herself enter the building and begin her attack. Tifa was not interested in this at all. She did nothing but kick guards around and stole their keys to gain access to the prison and other parts of ShinRa. Tifa didn't want to put tons of people out of work and so she decided it would be best if she said nothing about the guards. She would wait for Scarlet to suggest something about her technology and Tifa would agree that it needed improvement. That way she would know her way around the ShinRa's defences if she ever needed to break in again… after she got out. Plus she'd be wasting their money by making them pay for new equipment and Tifa was more then happy to do that.

Tifa worked with Scarlet who constantly asked her questions about her physical shape and martial art skills. She would type in Tifa's answers after each question and save them on the computer. Scarlet asked if the lasers had missed her, Tifa said they had and they should get new ones with better aim and Scarlet agreed and wrote it down. Tifa then suggested new cameras for these ones were fuzzy and the range of motion was limited. Scarlet once again agreed. Tifa was starting to think she could get Scarlet to build her anything she wanted as long as it was "for the good of ShinRa."

Ending with Scarlet deciding to replace every single camera in the building Tifa was about to be sent back to the prison. The phone rang before she could leave and Scarlet picked it up. Tifa tried to listen but could only hear Scarlet's side of the conversation.

"Yes, no, yeah she did, no she didn't, no, yeah, okay, I understand, you want what!? Yes… Sir, bye" Scarlet hung up the phone and turned to face Tifa. The woman hadn't seemed to mind her before but it was clear now she hated Tifa. "The president wants you to eat dinner with us. All the employees from the top three floors eat together and by default your one of them."

"Oh" Tifa blinked. She would rather eat in her cell. She could tell Scarlet was not happy about the arrangement but Tifa could careless about her feelings. She just didn't want to sit around the ShinRa faculty and have them staring at her. Tifa sighed, she figured there was nothing she could do. If she refused out of politeness the president would probably kill her for not appreciating the hospitality of the ShinRa company.

Scarlet, Hojo and a shaking Tifa walked down the hall. They were met by two men. One was tall and had no hair. The other was had fiery red hair and a huge grin on his face. Tifa almost smiled, she was surprised someone could be so happy while working here.

"What's cooking in the lab today?" He asked Hojo and grinned even more.

"You'll be tomorrow if you keep asking that" Hojo replied, humour could be found in his tone.

"Reno and Rude, back from another Mako trip I see" Scarlet greeted.

"Yeah, we found tons, Rufus should be happy" The red haired one said. Tifa was still trying to decide which one was Reno and which one was Rude. That's when the happy boy turned his attention to Tifa and she backed away slightly, Reno smirked. "Who's this?"

"That's Tifa Lockhart" Scarlet introduced her, "She broke through our defence and freed some prisoners and so we're using her to improve our defences."

"Awesome! I would've paid to see that. I'm Reno and that's Rude" Reno pointed to the frowning man behind her. Tifa smiled slightly at them both but she soon resumed frowning when she remembered the dinner.

"Reno who's side are you on? Her breaking into ShinRa is not 'awesome'" Scarlet hissed and continued walking. Reno rolled his eyes at her departing figure and stuck his tongue out. Tifa could tell she was going to be able to stand him a lot more than the others.

The group made their way to a large room with a huge table filled with tons of food in the middle. Mr. ShinRa was already seated at the very top of the table. Rufus sat on his right. Across from him was an empty chair. Tifa would have to ask about that, her curiosity was getting the best for her about the chair. Scarlet and two other fat men sat at the top closest to the President along with Hojo amongst them.

Reno, Rude and Elena sat in a group after that. Elena patted the chair next to her. Tifa moved slowly over to it and sunk into it as far as she could hoping to disappear from sight. Tifa felt very undressed amongst all these people in suits and dresses and herself only in her ill-fitting prison clothing,

Reno started shovelling food onto his plate, as did everyone else. Tifa just blinked, she wasn't sure what to do. She was extremely hungry but didn't want to eat for fear of being shot. Tifa got a quick glace of Rufus, he was staring at her with amusement. Tifa frowned, she hated him.

"Here Tifa" Elena put some food on her plate seeing as how the girl would not do it herself.

"Thanks" Tifa said quietly and slowly ate the huge helping she had received. At least she knew of the eat properly at a fancy dinner, feeling confident as her used her knife and fork more gracefully than Scarlet. After she was finished she whispered to Elena. "Who's the empty chair for?"

"That's for Rufus' bride, once he gets one, or Mr. Shinra's. Who ever is first" Elena explained.

"Oh" Tifa shrugged. Tifa waited while everyone finished. She didn't dare look up but she could feel several pairs of eyes on her.

"Elena, take Miss Lockhart back to her cell please. Thank you for joining us Tifa" Mr. Shinra said.

"Thank you" Tifa said so quietly everyone could barely hear her. Elena stood up and Tifa followed her out. Tifa was more then happy to be locked back in her cell. She, surprisingly enough, felt safe in here rather then being outside. Tifa laid down on the cold table, somehow deemed a bed, and closed her eyes. She was freezing but somehow found a way to fall asleep.

"Rufus?" Mr. Shinra started.

"Yes Sir" Rufus replied as he walked with his father toward the elevators.

"When do you plan to get married? I'm not going to be here forever and if you're luck with women continues there will be no woman to help you take over when I'm gone" Mr. Shinra told him.

"I'll marry someone when I find them" Rufus said flatly.

"Rufus I'm sick of this, if you don't find a wife in two weeks. I'm assigning you someone. I need to know there'll be and heir" Mr. Shinra snapped.

"What? Absolutely not!" Rufus growled. Mr. Shinra looked at his son with murderous eyes.

"You will not disobey me" Mr. Shinra told him in a tone that ended all arguments. Rufus furiously stomped off to his room while Mr. Shinra rode the elevator up to his room. Rufus narrowed his eyes at the city below.

"I'll find someone" Rufus muttered, "I'm not letting my father win."


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Tifa woke up before the break of dawn. Even though she didn't feel tired she never wanted to leave her bed. She didn't want to go back into that building and work with the creepy members of the science department. Tifa closed her eyes and rested for what seemed like only a little while before Elena knocked on her cellar door. Tifa opened her eyes to find it was now fully light outside. "Let's go Tifa" Elena opened her cell. Tifa stepped out and followed close behind Elena back up to the lab. She was going to try and take a few thing tonight, when she left for dinner she planned to pocket some scissors or anything she could use to pick the door of her cell.

Tifa passed by the main doors of ShinRa every day. Every time she did she wanted to run through them and hope she wasn't killed. But Tifa knew better, they had got her the first time. Next time they wouldn't be so nice and Tifa knew it. She still remembered Rufus' threat, if she was going to die she didn't want it to be by his hands and she knew Barret would come for her soon.

Tifa waved good bye to Elena and headed inside the lab. Scarlet wasn't there so Tifa just sat and stared at Hojo. He was working on some sort of experiment. Tifa took her chance and looked for a pair of scissors. She found a pair and slipped them into her pocket. She spotted some short steel wires and pocketed them as well.

"Looking for something?' Scarlet asked when she entered and saw Tifa walking around.

"No" Tifa jumped and turned to her. "Just looking" She sat back down at her computer. It was time to get back to work.

Late that night after the awkward dinner and long work day Tifa was back in her cell. She waited quietly until she heard the guards leave on they're break. Tifa guessed another reason ShinRa was so easy to break into was because the guards never excepted anything to happen. Tifa removed a wire from her pocket and moved towards the door. She made sure her arm wouldn't touch the bars allowing her not to get a shock. Tifa picked the lock slowly. It took several tries and a couple broken pins until the lock finally clicked and the door swung open. Much to her surprise no alarms went off, Tifa noted this was another flaw in the ShinRa prison.

Tifa made her way down the hall and to the mirrors. She took out the scissors and held her breath as her long locks fell to the floor. She cut it so it fell to the middle of her back. Tifa evened it out and brushed through it. She thinned out her bangs next. Tifa managed to smile, her hair was no longer in her way. She really needed a shower though, she hoped it was on the agenda for tomorrow.

She was a mess every where besides her hair. Dirt covered her knees and tiny bits of her face. Her lips were dry and cracked. Tifa frowned, she didn't like feeling worthless, her thoughts were soon interrupted by two hands slipping onto her shoulders. Tifa froze, she was caught, what would happen? She didn't dare and look to see who it was. Tifa stopped to think clearly for a second, it couldn't be guards, they would have attacked her but the hands on her shoulders were gentle and soft. Tifa turned around and looked up, to her surprise and horror Rufus was looking down at her.

Tifa remained frozen, she didn't move a muscle. She remained still as Rufus ran his hand through her hair.

"It suits you, Tifa" He purred, Tifa shivered, she wanted to get away from him and his touch, "but I have to ask, what are you doing out of your cell?" Tifa looked to the ground, she had been thinking about escaping. She figured if no one knew she was out she had a fair chance of running away. She had now discovered that any attempt to get out was futile since Rufus appeared to have a constant watch over her.

"I don't know" Tifa told him quietly. Rufus pulled her to him and stared down into her eyes. Tifa wanted to die at that moment. She already knew what death would be like since she had seen hell in his eyes. Tifa squirmed in his tight grip and soon found it was no use struggling.

"You don't know? Your figured you'd just take a walk?" Rufus hissed.

"I… I'm sorry" She choked out. She didn't know what else to say, mentally kicking herself for her weakness.

"Sorry doesn't work for me" Rufus snapped. When Tifa finally found the courage to look up into his eyes she was surprised at what she saw. His face was as it always was, he didn't look mad at all. Tifa realised what he was doing, he was doing this to make her scared. Tifa wasn't going to take it and she pushed him away from her.

"Leave me alone" She snapped under her breath, Rufus' eyes grew wide for only an instant before his expression returned to normal.

"What?" He stepped towards her. He towered over her but Tifa refused to back down.

"I did nothing wrong. I didn't run, I didn't hurt anyone. You have no right to be mad at me" Tifa said but soon regretted her words and she saw anger flash through his eyes.

"You broke out of your cell" Rufus started.

"I was going to go back" Tifa lied, her mouth was running a mile a minute and she couldn't stop it.

"Don't talk back to me" Rufus yelled at her and she became afraid of him again. She shrunk into herself and wasn't standing tall anymore. Rufus wasn't angry anymore, he had control of her again and that was all he wanted.

Rufus advanced towards her and Tifa stepped back, she could feel her anger growing as he came towards her again. She wanted him away from her but if she pushed him again she would surely pay for it with her life. Tifa took another step back into the wall. Damn, no endless hallway. Rufus walked straight up to her and leaned closer to her. Tifa clenched her fits and pressed herself into the wall. She hoped to fall through it, but it didn't happen, damn physics.

"You seem to have forgotten who's in charge" Rufus' tone was menacing and harsh.

"No" Tifa shook her head, wanting him to go away. Rufus moved past her face and put his lips by her ear.

"Good, remember who I am. I can do anything I want" Rufus hissed. Tifa's knees almost buckled when he place his hand on her hip and stroked her side gently. Tifa despised ever second of his torment because she knew he was only doing this scare her. If Rufus had a heart Tifa would have believed he liked her but Tifa knew better.

"Please stop" Tifa wanted so desperately to run away.

"Are you forgetting again?" Rufus questioned. Tifa shut her eyes tightly and refused to let herself cry. Rufus lightly kissed her jaw. Tifa almost fainted, he placed soft kisses along her jaw line until he stopped at her lips. Tifa's eyes widened. No! He wouldn't. "Tifa, never forget the power I hold over you" and then he added "and the rest of this world."

"I wont" Tifa told him, maybe he would stop tormenting her now. Rufus backed away from her, he was pleased at what he had accomplished.

"Now go back to your cell and stay there" Rufus snapped. "Don't forget I'm watching you if you ever try and escape again." Tifa took her chance and ran down the hall back into her cell. She shut the door and jumped onto her bed. Tifa sat and hugged her knees to her chest. She never want to go through that again.

Rufus strolled down the hall and out of the prison. He had put her back in her place and that's what he had wanted to do. The disgusting girl would never stand up to him again. Something about her pushing him back like that made him like her for an instant but that soon turned to hate when he realised she was defying him. Rufus had to commend her bravery, the last person who did that to him wound up dead.

Tifa had somehow managed to fall asleep that night. She didn't want to go back into the lab, she was too tired and scared to move. To her surprise Elena never came to pick her up and Tifa decided Rufus was so furious with her he didn't want her anywhere near him. Tifa was glad, she closed her eyes again and went back to sleep.

A week passed without any confrontations between Rufus and herself. Tifa worked in the lab by herself or with Scarlet. Tifa had now convinced Scarlet that the walls in the prison were too weak and Scarlet instantly agreed and sent workers out to strengthen them. Spending ShinRa's money could be very entertaining. Elena and Reno came to visit Tifa often. Reno snuck her chocolate a few times.

"Nothing better then chocolate! It's the cure for the common everything" Reno chuckled and Tifa gave a small smile.

"Thanks" She slipped it into her pocket to save it for later. They would never stay long for Scarlet would yell at them to get back to work. Sometimes Reno would make a funny face behind her back and then leave. Tifa always missed them, they were the one good thing in her day.

Dinners were becoming less of a chore for her. She had learned that staying quiet the whole time meant no attention would be drawn to her and she could slip out when no one was looking. Tifa was allowed to walk around the ShinRa building without any trouble. She figured Rufus believed he had scared her so badly she would never think about leaving, unfortunately it was true.

Tifa had also chosen to invest in her own self protection. At night she would do push ups and sit ups to make herself stronger. Her body was once again toned and appealing. She planed to beat Rufus up one of these days and was preparing for it. She knew that she would be killed in the process but a day would come when she would no longer fear death and at that moment she would punch him.

All the wishing that Barret would save her was diminishing with each day. Barret must have thought she was dead and decided not to come looking for her. Tifa knew it was for the best. She didn't want others getting killed on her account.

Tifa made her way to her cell once again. She lay down on her bed and watched as the sun disappeared from sight leaving her in darkness. Tifa closed her eyes and fell asleep.

When Tifa woke up the next morning she wasn't cold. In fact she was warm and covered by a blanket. Tifa opened her eyes and blinked, when did this get here? She wondered.

"Hey Tifa, glad to see you're warm" Elena smirked.

"You gave this to me?" Tifa asked, sitting up.

"Yup, Reno and I thought you needed it. Just make sure to hide it under the bed when you leave so no one takes it" Elena warned and left. Tifa grinned and folded the blanket. She slide it under the bed and headed out of her cell. Elena waited as Tifa showered. Tifa was happy to receive her freezing cold showers everyday. Tifa emerged once again in her navy suit.

"Okay lets go" Tifa sighed. She, once again, didn't want to go back to the lab. Elena gave a nod and they walked back up to the lab. Tifa was able to roam around ShinRa during the day but still had to be supervised at night and in the mornings. Tifa felt so babied but there was nothing she could do about it.

Scarlet seems more hissy then usual when her sat down at her work station. Questioning her about it was not an option so Tifa waited till Scarlet spoke.

"I need to look over the budget" Scarlet sighed, "I think we've just about spent to our limit but Mr. Shinra said to do everything to make things better" Tifa smirked inwardly. She wanted to make ShinRa lose all its money, though that was not going to happen but she could still dream. "Go ask Rufus about it, then report back to me"

"What?" Tifa almost snapped. She did not want go see him.

"Go ask him if we can spend more money" Scarlet commanded.

"But…" Tifa started.

"Go" Scarlet pointed towards the door. Tifa slugged out the door and headed towards the elevator. She went through the doors and her heart started pounding. Tifa stepped into the dim office, Tifa remembered his warning about not warning to be bothered but she didn't know how to ask.

"Rufus? Can I come in?" Tifa asked, no one answered. Tifa cautiously walked farther in. The room was dark and Tifa couldn't see more then three feet in front of her. She stepped in further and stopped in front of Rufus' desk. "Um, Rufus?' Tifa looked around. She wanted more then anything to run out of his creepy office and never return but if Scarlet found out she'd just send her back again.

Tifa bit her lip and waited, she wasn't sure what to do. There was no answer anywhere so she figured Rufus wasn't here. Tifa turned around and headed towards the door. With her back turned to the open room she got a eerie feeling. Tifa was more then right to feel that way because soon enough her hand was grabbed and she was swung into the wall. Tifa knew it was Rufus, he seemed to enjoy cornering her like that.

"What are you doing in here?" Rufus poured fire from his eyes into hers. He stood over her and put his two arms over her head, trapping her.

"I… Scarlet, s… she wanted me to ask about money" Tifa stuttered.

"What did I say about entering my office? Are you forgetting who's in charge again?" Rufus asked in a menacing tone.

"No… I, I thought, no one said, but I" Tifa tired to find her words but she couldn't. Rufus glared down at her, he removed his arms and Tifa prayed he'd let her go back to the lab but then Tifa straightened up and glared back at him. She had a new goal, she didn't want to give into him anymore, she was tired of playing his games. He wasn't going to kill her, if he had wanted to do that he would've done it a long time ago. Rufus saw the bravery in her eyes, so she was challenging him? Rufus thought about what he could do to make her regret it. Physical pain would have been the easiest way but that was no fun. Rufus wanted to scare her deeply and he knew a way to use her hate for him to do it.

"You'll knock next time" Rufus told her, Tifa nodded but she then stopped being so compliant.

"Why do you treat me like this?" Tifa asked.

"Like what?" Rufus acted innocent.

"You torment me, tease me, you have no reason, no right to" Tifa snapped as lightly as she could.

"I have every right to" Rufus frowned at her and Tifa narrowed her eyes.

"No, you don't" Tifa moved away from him. Rufus grabbed her arm and pulled her back in front of him.

"You have no authority, saying that" Rufus hissed.

"Stop being a baby" Tifa actually snapped at him this time. "I'm not yours to control and I never will be. I want you to stop this right now" Tifa was finding her courage again. Rufus was a little taken back at first but his expression soon returned to the way it was.

"What are you planning to do?" Rufus asked.

"Hurt you" Tifa told him, she saw his eyes momentarily widen but soon they narrowed.

"How?" He placed his hand on her hip. Tifa's eyes shot towards his hand as it started slowly moving up her side. She moved her gaze to meet his eyes again.

"You really want to find out" Tifa clenched her fist. Rufus knew she was going punch him.

"Not unless your ready to be thrown out that window" Rufus threatened and tilted his head to the side to indicate the window to which he was referring. Tifa wasn't sure what to do now. She wanted to shock him the same way he was trying to shock her. Tifa reached her hand up and touched his face softly. The look on his face was priceless, Rufus looked at her with wide eyes.

"I love you," Tifa purred and Rufus' clenched his jaw and backed away from her. Tifa laughed softly. Rufus quickly returned to his normal self and this time he got angry.

"What are you laughing at" He snapped.

"You" Tifa giggled, "The looked on you face was priceless" Tifa stopped giggling when she saw how mad he was becoming. She had said what she should not have but Tifa didn't care. She planned to punch him before he threw her out the window. At least she'd get a shot in before she died. Rufus marched over to her once again, he pushed her against the wall once again and Tifa winched. Rufus forced her arms up above her head. He held them in place with one of his hands.

"You love me? Fine, you're mine then. Tell me when you give up" Rufus smirked in a way that made Tifa shiver. He looked so evil at that moment. Tifa was regretting everything she had just done. Rufus moved his hand down her side and started kissing her jaw line. Tifa moved her head to the side in an attempt to get away but this only allowed Rufus better access to her neck. Rufus took advantage of this and continued kissing his way down her neck. Tifa knew he wouldn't go too far, would he? She was starting to get nervous. Rufus ran his finger around the inside top part of her slacks. Tifa freaked out, he WAS going too far with this. His hand traveled up the inside of her shirt and inched its way to her chest. Rufus looked up at her with his wicked eyes. He resumed kissing her along her collar bone.

"Stop" Tifa sniffed and tear flowed form her eyes. He was to close to her chest and she was terrified. "I give up." Rufus let go of her and she dropped to the floor.

"See? I control your mind. How far I was going to go was all in your head, and I knew everything you were thinking" Rufus smirked. Tifa wanted to disappear into the floor at that moment. 'Just go away' she wanted to yell at him. Rufus bent down and removed the tears from her face. "I'm glad you've learned your lesson. Tell Scarlet she's not to go over budget and I'll make sure to tell my dad we have no more use for you." With that he left his office and she was all alone.

"I hate you" Tifa hissed but he didn't hear her. Tifa rose to her feet and walked into the elevator. She whipped the tears from her face and straighten herself out. She felt so dirty, she needed a shower but that would be delayed till the next day. Tifa went back into the lab.

"What'd he say?" Scarlet asked.

"No, nothing over budget" Tifa told her and started crying again. Scarlet gave her a puzzled look.

"Are you really that torn up about it?" She asked dumbly.

"No, it's not that" Tifa shook her head. She didn't know why she was still crying. She tried to stop but could not.

"Then get it together girl, we have to plan out the money" Scarlet snapped, losing her patients.

"May I go early today?" Tifa asked.

"No" Scarlet was furiously all of a sudden and Tifa did not know why. Scarlet slapped her across the face. Tifa's head snapped to the side and her eyes grew wide. "Get back to work." Tifa sat in her computer chair in a sullen heap. Her cheek burned and she could feel a burse starting to form. Her knotted hair fell in front of her face. Tifa was ready to punch Rufus now.


	3. Chapter 3

Tifa stared at the ceiling of her cell. She was trying to forget the events of the day. Dinner had been awful, both Scarlet and Rufus were giving her death glares and no one seemed to notice. Tifa rolled over and faced the wall. She moved her hand to her cheek and winched from the pain of touching it. Stupid Scarlet. She had no reason to slap her like that, Tifa guessed that Scarlet was having a bad day or something but that still gave her no reason to hurt her. Pulling the blanket over her Tifa closed her eyes and fell asleep. She was so tired, her body ached and she was more then happy to slip into a deep slumber.

"Hey girl, wake up" Elena called to her in the morning. Tifa could barely open her eyes. She had slept so solidly it was hard to wake up. She sat up and rubbed her eyes while Elena unlocked the door.

"Sorry" Tifa sighed and walked out. She headed into the shower. This was something she had waited for. She scrubbed her skin in every spot Rufus had kissed her. She practically made her skin bleed in the effort to feel clean. Tifa finally stopped, she knew this wasn't going to help her. She washed her hair and with that she left the shower. She felt clean again, to some extent, and that's what made her happy.

That's when she decided to totally change her mood. Tifa was letting Rufus win by getting to her and making her sad. No matter what she would remain happy just to see him go crazy. Tifa left the bath room and brushed her hair. That's when Elena notice the mark on her cheek.

"Tifa? What happened?" She asked and looked closely at the mark.

"Oh, Scarlet hit me" Tifa admitted, "But don't tell anyone!"

"What! Why?' Elena was confused.

"I don't need to draw attention to myself okay. I'm already not needed at ShinRa anymore and so I think if I lay low they wont kill me"

"Oh, um good plan?" Elena tried and shrugged. The two girls walked up to the lab and Elena left her. Tifa was surprised to find Mr. Shinra and Rufus waiting for her. She bit her lip.

"Morning Mr. Shinra" Tifa greeted trying to sound polite. She noticed Scarlet and Hojo were not here making her feel less safe. At least if they were here she'd have a shield.

"What's that on your face Miss Lockhart?" Mr. Shinra asked when he saw Tifa's burse. Tifa quickly moved her hair over it.

"I… um… bumped into… the cell's door" Tifa thought of some excuse. She didn't know why she was defending Scarlet but she didn't want to cause any trouble.

"Be more careful next time" Mr. Shinra told her and Tifa gave a nod. Rufus eyed her suspiciously. "We came to talk to you about your stay at ShinRa" Tifa gulped, she knew this was going to happen. Stupid Rufus! Curse him for telling his father there was no use for her.

"Oh" Tifa simply said. Rufus started to shift uncomfortably and Tifa wondered why. He looked mad but nervous. When he noticed Tifa was looking at him Rufus straightened up and turned his head away.

"You see I made a deal that if Rufus wasn't married in two weeks I would assign him a wife" Mr. Shinra start. Tifa could see where this was going and she was looking for a window to jump through. "So I'm making him live with you, if in a month he does not love you, you'll be killed for your treason and he'll fine a new girl to tryout, possibly Elena" Tifa's eye grew wide.

"But I…" Tifa started, what was she going to say? I'm married, I don't want to, I'm gay? All those lies would get her killed faster. "Nothing"

"Fine then, report to Rufus' room you are no longer needed in the lab" Mr. Shinra pointed towards the door. Tifa left and headed into the elevator.

"I still can not believe you making me and her do this" Rufus frowned even deeper.

"I want a heir and your attitude is not going to get in the way of that. Plus Tifa is the best looking person in ShinRa. Just be grateful I didn't put you with Scarlet" Mr. ShinRa snapped at his son. Rufus narrowed his eyes. The old man would be dead soon, that though alone got him through his days.

Tifa wondered into Rufus' room. It was one of those everything-in-one rooms. Tifa saw there was a kitchen in one corner, TV and couch in another and a bed in the third corner. Then in the last corner there was a door. Tifa opened it. It was a bathroom, as she suspected it would be.

She flopped down on the couch and looked up at the ceiling. Great. Now she was doomed for sure.

"Elena can I talk to you for a moment?" Rufus was asking her a question he already knew the answer too.

"Yes" Elena walked over to him. Rufus had notice that Her and Tifa were becoming close friends.

"Where did Tifa get her burse?" Rufus glared down at her. Elena shrunk in stature and looked around the room. She did not want to meet Rufus' eyes for if she did he would know if she was lying.

"She hit her cheek on the door of her cell" Elena used the excuse Tifa had told her too. Rufus wasn't buying it. A woman as smart as Tifa would not simply walk into a rather visible door.

"Are you lying to me?' Rufus sneered. "Look at me" Elena was force to look into his eyes.

"Yes" She almost cried.

"Then tell me the truth" Rufus snapped.

"Scarlet hit her" Elena looked to the floor after she delivered her answer "Please don't do anything to her, Tifa said it was partly her fault"

"Do you think she's lying about that?" Rufus asked.

"Yes, but she wouldn't say anything other than that" Elena was telling the truth and Rufus knew she was. Elena was shaking and wanted to run off into Reno's comforting arms but she could not until she was told to go.

"Fine, you may leave" Rufus watched Elena take off and disappear from his sight. He went up to his room to have a chat with Tifa.

Tifa was still looking up at the ceiling when her view was obstructed by Rufus leaning over the couch.

"Go away" Tifa snapped.

"Don't talk to me like that" Rufus hissed back. He walked around the other side of the couch and sat her up. He sat down on the couch and placed Tifa on his lap.

"Hey!" Tifa squirmed a bit but Rufus held her in place. She had no idea what he was doing.

"Sit still" Rufus commanded and Tifa stopped moving. She was tired, to tried to fight anything that was about to happen to her. Rufus moved his hand and softly touched her cheek. Tifa jerked back when the pain shot through her. Rufus pulled her face towards him once again and continued to touch her cheek.

"Rufus that hurts" Tifa tried to pull away again. Rufus removed his hand and looked into her eyes. Tifa wasn't sure what he was trying to do.

"Scarlet hurt you, didn't she?" He questioned her as if he already knew the answer. Tifa figured Elena had told him.

"Yeah" Tifa admitted.

"Why?" Rufus continued to ask questions.

"I was crying about… about what you did and she slapped me, harder then she intended to I think" Tifa was trying to make things sound better.

"Do you want me to punish her?" Rufus asked, Tifa was shocked he was even asking her.

"No" Tifa shook her head. She didn't want to see anyone hurt or murdered on her account. She looked at him carefully. Tifa wasn't sure about him at the moment. He seemed to be getting nicer but she could be horribly wrong. She studied his face intently trying to see if his intensions were genuine. When he was like this and not throwing her against walls he was actually kind of nice. Tifa could see a glimpse of amusement in his eyes. "What?" She had to ask.

"I'm not that pretty, you can stop staring now" Rufus smirked. Tifa rolled her eyes.

"Get over yourself" Tifa slid off his lap and laid down on the couch once again. "Now go away, I have a ceiling to stare at."

"Enjoy" Rufus got up and left. Tifa was speechless, he actually did was she told him too. Was this how she was destined to spend her days? Staring at the ceiling and doing nothing. Tifa would be bored to death before they had a chance to kill her. Looking at her watch, Tifa realized it was time for dinner. She walked out into the hall and headed to the dinning room. She entered and saw that Mr. Shinra was already there. She sat down at her usual spot .

"Wrong seat, my dear" Mr. Shinra spoke up. Tifa blinked and saw he was gesturing to the seat across from where Rufus usually sat.

Oh" Tifa rose from her seat and sat down in the other chair. She looked down at her old spot. The room looked so different from up here. Tifa wasn't sure if her liked it. She waited patiently for the rest of the members of the staff arrived. Tifa fiddled around with the folds of her vest. Reno marched in dramatically followed by Elena who was rolling her eyes and Rude and Rufus who were barely hiding their smirks.

"Tifa baby, I haven't seen you in like a day" Reno peered down at her through his sun glasses. Tifa smiled.

"I know, I've miss you so much" Tifa said sarcastically. Reno chuckled and sat down in his usual place. Reno was the one things that brightened her day, he always found something stupid to do that made her laugh. Today was happier for her. It was part of her plan to remain happy no matter what. She planned to drive Rufus crazy with her joy, if she could keep it up long enough to do so.

Tifa sat quietly through dinner. She did not look at Rufus even once and never said a word. Eating her food in peace had become a daily tradition. Elena came over to her to led her out. She hadn't needed to do so but Tifa thought that Elena might have sensed her want to leave. Tifa walked out the door with her.

"That's what it's going to be like for a month" Tifa sighed and Elena smiled.

"It wont be so bad, I hope he keeps you, if not I'm next' She shook her head in disbelief. "Look Tifa, I'm sorry I told Rufus about Scarlet hitting you" Elena told her as they walked down the hall.

"It's okay. He forced you to, didn't he?" Tifa asked. Elena nodded slowly.

"He's just so scary" Elena breathed.

"I know" Tifa knew all to well. She thought about the previous times he had scared her half to death. Tifa was surprised he still hadn't hit her. Maybe that day would come soon. It would give her a reason to run away from him. Tifa gave a slight wave to Elena as she entered her room. Tifa wasn't looking forward to this, there was too many things that could happen over the course of a night.

Walking over to the couch, Tifa was surprised to find pyjamas laid out for her. Tifa held them up, she was more than happy for them. They were light pink, the top was long sleeved and baggy. 'At least he's not perverted enough to put me in something skimpy' Tifa smirked in triumph. She entered the bath room and had a shower. She did it quickly so she wouldn't be caught by him and possibly yelled at. After drying herself off she put on the pyjamas.

Tifa headed back into the room. She flopped down on the couch once again. She planned to spend her days here if she wasn't allowed to go wonder outside the doors of this room. Tifa closed her eyes, she had suddenly grown tired. Trying to sleep wasn't working so she just lay there and waited for Rufus to return.

The door clicked open and someone padded into the room with light foot steps. Tifa was half asleep but she knew it was Rufus, would else would venture into his room without a death wish. The bathroom door clicked shut and Tifa let go of a breath she didn't know she was holding. Shaking her head she told herself not to fear him like this. What happened to being brave and happy? Tifa knew that plan had failed the minute he walked through the door. His sheer presence was haunting her.

The bathroom door clicked open once again and the foot steps made there way over to the couch.

"Come to bed Tifa" Rufus ordered.

"I'm fine here" Tifa told him. Did he actually expect her to sleep in the same bed as him. No way! Rufus frowned.

"Are you disobeying me again?" He snapped and Tifa knew that this was going to lead to another fight.

"No," Tifa lied, "I just don't want to sleep near you and so I'm staying here" Tifa's tone was slightly defiant but she tried to keep it to minimum. Her wrist was grabbed and Tifa knew what was going to happen next. She was yanked up and spun around to face a angry faced Rufus. Tifa glared at him, she was to tired to deal with this right now. "Let me go"

"You're telling me what to do?" Rufus sounded almost amused, "There's one thing you always seem to fail to pick up on. I'm in charge, I think I've had to tell you that many times since you've got here"

"Then learn that you're not in charge of me" Tifa hissed trying to find the energy to fight back. He always did that to her, got her blood broiling and pulse racing.

"Oh but I am, remember before in the office?" Rufus knew that she did all too well and just to remind her he slid his finger long her collar bone. Tifa jerked away. "You thought so may things and I knew them all. You think you have me figured out? Not even close or else you would've known how far I would've gone" Tifa was almost in tears. How dare he remind her of that. She had been so sure he'd do anything to win his little mind game and she was still sure of it. But the way he was talking it sounded like he would've done noting serious. Tifa didn't believe it for one second. He was twisted and she knew he would've gone to far.

"Rufus, stop it" Tifa said firmly and attempted to move away from him. Rufus narrowed his eyes.

"Get into bed, you're tired" He said with authority and Tifa decided her was too tired to fight him. Tifa walked over to his large bed and got in. She pulled the blankets over her head and stayed as close to the edge as possible. Tifa heard the TV playing in the other corner of the room. Tifa closed her eyes and tried hard to fall asleep. If she was able to maybe she wouldn't have to deal with him until the morning.

It was 1 a.m and she still had not fallen asleep. Tossing and turning for an hour had not helped her get comfortable and since Tifa refused to face anything but the wall she was stuck in her uncomfortable spot. The TV was shut off and Tifa heard Rufus walking over to the bed. Oh crap. Tifa closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep. She hadn't moved for a while and so she hoped Rufus would buy it.

Two arms snaked around her waist and pulled her up against a solid, bare, chest. Tifa cringed as Rufus ran a hand down her side and across her stomach. He moved his chin over her shoulder so he could whisper into her ear.

"28 days to go" Rufus said the oddest thing to her. Tifa shivered in disgust and he hugged her closer to him. Tifa knew why he was doing this. He wanted to see her cry, and be uncomfortable. He wanted her to fear him and become confused and enraged by his words. Tifa hated him for it but she decided to beat him at his own game. Tifa placed her hands over his and held them gently. She could feel his shock as she did so. Tifa smirked, this was too easy.


	4. Chapter 4

The arms were still around her when she woke up. Tifa was sure he would've gone to work especially since it was, she glanced at the clock, 10 am! Tifa was surprised she had slept that long, and he had as well. Tifa rolled around in his vice grip to face him. Rufus was still sleeping. She couldn't believe it. He looked so peaceful and sweet. Tifa could draw on his face or leave his side or well no she couldn't do anything of those things. All of the above options would lead her to her grave faster.

Though she doubted her would kill her for getting out of bed before he did, she wouldn't put it past him to do so. Tifa rolled back around. She didn't want to look at him anymore. Tifa waited silently and listened to his breathing. She could feel his chest moving up and down against her back. Tifa tried to move away and out of his arms. It was no use, even when he was sleeping his grip was extremely strong. Even the push ups she'd been doing didn't help her in her fight against him.

Tifa just gave up and closed her eyes again. She was stuck in bed and because of her surroundings she hated being there. If this was her room in Seventh Heaven she would've enjoyed the time to sleep but this was not a vacation for her.

Finally Rufus started to move. He loosen his grip on her monetarily, Tifa rolled away a bit but was pulled back. She guessed he had remembered that he was still holding onto her after he was more awake. She heard him chuckled and Tifa gritted her teeth at the sound, it was so creepy.

"Where do you think your going?" Rufus asked and hugged her closer to him.

"No where apparently" Tifa said in a spoiled tone. Her head remained on her pillow and she looked straight ahead. She almost smirked as she remembered the tone of Rufus' voice. Even the rich and powerful boy who seemed to think he was a God sounded sleepy after just waking up. Tifa stiffened as he began trailing kisses down her neck. She once again wanted to get out of his arms.

Rufus ran his hand inside her silk pyjama top and touched her stomach. Tifa clenched her teeth and wait for him to stop. She was more then aware that fighting back would not help. Rufus grinned at her discomfort. Nothing like tormenting her in the morning to start off his day well. Rufus turned her to face him. Tifa looked of to the side.

He stopped running his hand up and down her side and used it to turn her face towards him. Tifa still had the burse on her cheek and she hoped he would not touch it. Rufus leaned towards her so their faces were only inches apart.

"Better leave me alone" Tifa warned.

"Or you'll do what?" Rufus leaning over her and Tifa shrunk back into her pillow. Their noses were barely touching and Rufus moved her hands above her head and held them here.

"I'll bite" Tifa nipped his nose causing him to smirk gently. Tifa was starting to become nervous since he had her arms above her head. The next thing he did came as a totally shock. Rufus leaned down and kissed her. Tifa's eyes widened and she wasn't sure what he was trying to do. He had never kissed her before. Tifa's best guess was he was still playing the same game, he was just trying to make her nervous and scared.

Tifa fought back the only way she knew how. She relaxed and closed her eyes and deepened the kiss. It was Rufus' turn to get nervous. She was learning too quickly. He couldn't believe the girl was trying to beat him at his own game. There was no way she was going to win.

Rufus slipped his tongue into her mouth. Tifa was more determined then ever, he'd gotten the best of her every single time. This time he'd be the one to say he gave up. Tifa managed to get one of her arms out of his grasp. She reached up and ran her fingers through her hair. She was surprised it was so soft. His hair always appeared to be filled with gel and hard but it wasn't at the moment. Tifa moved her other hand away as well and ran both hands down his chest.

Rufus was going to get her for that. He moved his hand down and under her shirt. He held her sides gently and stroked his hands up and down them. Using his fingers like rakes he ran them up her back. Tifa shivered under his touch and he knew he was getting the upper hand once again.

She was going to get even with him. She rolled over, taking him with her until she was on top. Tifa broke their kiss and started kissing her way down his neck. Tifa felt his hands tremble and she knew she had won. He now knew how she felt. Rufus rolled her onto her back once again and looked down at her.

"That's enough" He snapped. Tifa smirked in victory. "Don't look so proud." Tifa didn't care that he looked like he wanted to murder her, she had won and that was final. Rufus got out of bed and stomped into the bathroom. Tifa giggled to herself. She thought it would take a lot more then that to get him to crack but she had discovered that if he was not fully in control of the situation he lost.

Anticipating the revenge for her actions would be no fun but Tifa didn't mind. Her one victory was enough for her. She sat up and swung her legs over the bed. Tifa stretched out her arms and sighed. Now what she was going to do? She would be bored for the rest of the day.

Tifa looked up as the bathroom door shot open. Tifa tired not to smile, Rufus was still furious. He marched over to her and pulled her up. Tifa wasn't scared of him anymore, she knew he could do almost nothing to scare her anymore.

"Never try anything like that again" Rufus snapped, Tifa blinked. It wasn't that big of a deal but Rufus was furious at her. When ever he touched her or scared her he had felt nothing but this time she had made his body react to her and that was what was making him so mad. He did not want to feel for her.

"Fine" Tifa agreed but only because she was so satisfied with her win. With that he left her and went off to work. Tifa skipped into the bathroom and took a shower. This time she didn't try to scrub the life out of her skin she didn't mind that he had kissed her. She just wished her body hadn't reacted to it as much. She didn't want him to know he was effecting her that way.

It had been two weeks since their last confrontation. The month was half way through and Tifa thought about the end. Rufus did not love her, she was sure of that and so she turned her thoughts to her demise. Barret had not come for her yet, sometimes when she heard shooting or commotion in the streets of sector one her heart filled with hope a little. But that soon died away when no one came to her rescue. Tifa had tried her best to keep out of Rufus' way. He still insisted on sleeping with her in his arms but other than that she had little contact with him.

They rarely spoke. This bothered Tifa a little, though she did not love him she had grown fond of his company and at times he could make some amusing comments. Maybe it was because she was lonely that she found his company so appealing. Reno and Elena did speak with her sometimes but they were never around when she needed them the most since their work kept them away from ShinRa most of the time. Tifa would sometimes look over at Rufus. He would always sit quietly and read the newspaper or watch television. She wondered what he was thinking, if only to give her comfort that she was not be killed after the remaining two weeks passed.

On Rufus' side it was a different story. Everyday he had spent near Tifa was a struggle. He did not want to his father to know that he was starting to care for her since this would only mean that his father would win and Rufus did not want this. Rufus enjoyed the nights they spent together and how her body felt in his arms. It frustrated him that she could fluster him so much. Every morning was like waking up next to an angel, she always smelled good and sometimes she would smile at him through her sleepy eyes.

Rufus hated her. He hated the control she was gaining over him. He was always in control of his life and he was not use to someone else getting the better of him. He was sure that his father would keep her here and that Rufus would be forced to marry her. This idea was not unappealing but some aspects of it were. Tifa did not seem to love him and as he grew to care for her more the thought of making her miserable was not a pleasant one. And then there was always the looming victory of his father's match making. Rufus had thought about talking to her about their feelings for one another, if only to calm her from her worry of being killed. Sometimes he could heard her sigh deeply in worry and his upset him.

But he did not wish to be rejected by her so he remained quiet.

Tifa walked out of one of ShinRa's smaller gyms. She had been training here for a while now and was getting stronger. She was surprised her had been able to break into ShinRa almost a month ago when she had been no where near as strong as she was now. She headed back to her room to take a shower and change. Tifa stepped into her room and shut the door. She looked around, Rufus did not appear to be here. She had not told him that she had been working out and so far she had managed to avoid him.

Tifa entered the shower and turned on the hot water. She felt refreshed as the water washed over her whole body. Tifa washed her hair and stepped out of the shower. She dried herself off and dressed in clean clothing. When she entered her room again she checked for Rufus again but he was no where to be found. Out of boredom she walked out into the hall way and looked many floors down to the first floor of the ShinRa building. Tifa look the elevator down. She stood by the door and looked out. It was just at this very moment that she had realized she had not thought of running out the door for a very long time. She reflected on her thoughts, and realized that she did not want to disappoint Rufus by doing so.

Tifa walked down to the prisons where she had spent so many cold nights. There was not too many other prisoners at the moment. All of a sudden there was a loud crash and Tifa whirled around. She saw the wall behind her being knocked down and as the dust clear the figure of a large man emerged.

"Barret!?" Tifa exclaimed as her friend jumped over the rumble and spotted her.

"Tifa!" Barret rushed over to her and hugged her, lifting her off the ground. "I'm so glad you're still alive! We tired so many times to get past security but every time we tried ShinRa had put up some new defense!" Tifa smiled at the irony, then Barret added "Are you okay?"

"I'm just fine, I wasn't at first but things are better now" Tifa said, she told Barret about everything, leaving out any details about her and Rufus.

"I'm glad to hear you weren't tortured or something" Barret sighed and Tifa looked away. Tortured? A little but all in all her stay at ShinRa wasn't so bad. "let go before they catch us." Tifa froze, she had to leave, she knew it, but a part of her did not want to.

"Okay" Tifa said because she had to. Barret and Tifa jumped through the hole in the wall, Jessie and Biggs were waiting for them outside.

"Tifa!" Jessie exclaimed.

"Hello" Tifa smiled at her. Jessie apologized for Tifa's time at ShinRa on her account but Tifa insisted she was not mad or upset about it. The group started running down the allies away from ShinRa. By this time guards had been alerted and the group was being chased.

Tifa and Barret got separated from Jessie and Biggs but Tifa saw them slip down into the underground where the ShinRa soldiers would not catch them. She and Barret ran down a long alley. The alley split into two sections at the end. Tifa looked behind her, there were three guards running behind them. Tifa could hear the commotion around her and she thought that there would be others up ahead.

"Barret! I think there are more around us. We should head up the roofs" Tifa yelled and Barret nodded. When they reached the next fire escaped of an apartment in the alley they each started to climb opposite sides of the building. The guards were close behind them but luckily Tifa and Barret had an easier time maneuvering around and up the railings of the fire escape. Tifa was on the roof of one building and Barret was on the roof of another.

"Tifa, look out!" Barret called and Tifa turned around. To her surprise she saw Rufus standing at the other side of the roof with his long shot gun in his hand. The helicopter that had quickly dropped him off was flying away. Tifa was scared, she could see the anger in his eyes.

Rufus glared at her, he saw her eyes pleading with him. She seems to be telling him that this was not entirely what it looked like. Rufus wished to speak with her alone. He looked over to where Barret was, the guards in the alley had climbed up to the top of roof. Many others had joined them and Barret was now surrounded by ten gaurds.

"Run!" Tifa shouted and her and Barret took off. Rufus chased after Tifa and the guards after Barret. Tifa tired to see which roofs Barret was jumping to in order to stay close to him. The guards started to shoot at Barret and Tifa turned to look at him. He was able to avoid the shots. Tifa heard Rufus fire his gun behind her and she jumped to avoid the shot. He shot at her!! Tifa glared at him.

Rufus charged at her and swung a punch which she ducked under and hopped back away from him. Barret had the guards that were after him under control and he looked over to see Tifa with her fists up and Rufus with his gun ready.

"Tifa!" Barret called.

"Just run Barret, I've got this" Tifa called and gave him a reassuring smile. With that she charged at Rufus and attempted to kick him off his feet but he jumped out of the way. Barret started to run across the roof tops again, confident that Tifa could handle herself.

Once Rufus could see Barret was out of sight he looked at Tifa. Tifa too looked back but much to her regret Rufus lunged at her and managed to punch her in the stomach. Tifa fell to her knees and coughed. She glared angrily at his feet. Tifa kicked her foot out and swept it around in a circle, knocking Rufus off his feet as well. Rufus lay on his back, propping himself up on his elbows he looked over at her. Tifa was crouching and panting and glaring at him.

"You shot at me" Tifa yelled at him.

"You ran away" Rufus snapped back.

"Barret came for me, I belong with them, and you know that" Tifa told him in a softer tone.

Rufus stood up and helped Tifa up. He looked down at her. She was right, even if he was able to keep her for longer, her friends would come for her eventually.

"I know" Rufus spoke after a while and Tifa looked at him, his eyes were caring and soft, then he said "I cared about you, you know." Tifa's eyes widened.

"I didn't know…" Tifa said the only words that came to her head and looked down at the ground. Rufus lifted her chin so she was forced to look at him.

"No you didn't know that every moment I was around you was horrible. Horrible because I could not hold you, horrible because I had to wake up next to you knowing you felt nothing and horrible because everywhere I went I though of you and I could still smell you on my skin" Rufus growled at her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause you any pain Rufus. I have grown fond of you too" Tifa told him. Rufus was happy but he did not smile.

"I'm glad to hear that" Rufus attempted to convey his happiness to her. Tifa understood his gesture. He lend down and kissed her lips gently. Tifa closed her eyes and deepened the kiss. Rufus dropped his gun and snaked his arms around her waist while Tifa moved her hands up to run her fingers through his soft hair. Rufus slid his hand up her side and she moved her hands down his arms. She heard him groan deep in his throat. Then he pushed her away.

"Good bye Tifa" Rufus looked at her.

"Good bye Rufus" Tifa smiled softly at him. She jumped over a couple more roof tops and disappeared form his sight.

Rufus called Reno, "I lost her, come pick me up."

"Tifa? Tiiiiiifa?"

"Huh?" Tifa looked up to see Marlene looked at her from the other side of the counter. "I'm sorry Marlene, what is it?"

"When is daddy and Cloud coming home?" She asked. Tifa looked at her watch.

"It should be soon" Tifa told the girl and she bounced off to play. Tifa returned to cleaning dishes. She was once again lost in her thoughts. She wondered what Rufus was doing, she did think of him every once in a while. She was sure he thought of her. Tifa turned around when she heard the door open.

"Daddy!" Marlene cried and ran towards her father. Tifa smiled at Barret who smiled a greeting back at her. Tifa saw Cloud step out from behind the large man.

"Hello Tifa" Cloud greeted her warmly.

"Hello Cloud" Tifa smiled at him.

"How have you been? He asked.

"Well, pretty good, I got into some trouble but I had someone taking good care of me" She told him and cloud nodded.

"I heard about your run in with ShinRa" Cloud said.

"Yeah, I got a lot more than I bargained for" Tifa smiled to herself.


End file.
